Chrysler trying to get next generation minivan “right”: Marchionne

The 3.6 Pentastar engine is seen during a press conference at Chrysler's Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

DETROIT — With a 2014 launch date looming, Chrysler Group engineers and designers are continuing efforts to get the next generation minivan “right,” CEO Sergio Marchionne said Thursday.

“We’ve been doing this now for more than a year…. We keep on improving the quality because these are decisions that will last a lifetime,” Marchionne told reporters after announcing a $240-million investment in three Michigan plants. “The minivan is going to be around a long time and we’ve got to get it right.”

Both the Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town and Country minivans are manufactured at the Windsor Assembly Plant, a three-shift operation that employs more than 4,500 hourly workers.

Marchionne has said one of the minivan nameplates will disappear, and be replaced by a crossover utility vehicle, although he refused to say Thursday whether any final decision had been made. When asked whether Chrysler was on track for a 2014 launch of the new minivan, Marchionne said “more or less.”

Flanked by Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and UAW president General Holifield, Marchionne appeared before employees at the Mack 1 Engine plant and said the $240 investment at three Michigan plants would create 1,250 new jobs.

The bulk of the investment — $198 million — will go to the automaker’s Mack 1 Engine plant in Detroit, which assembles the 4.7-litre V-8 engine that powers the Ram 1500 pickup. The investment will enable the plant to produce the 3.6-litre Pentastar V-6 engine and add 250 jobs. The plant currently employs 144 hourly workers.

Marchionne also announced plans to add a third shift of 1,000 workers at its Warren Truck plant by next spring to increase production of the 2013 Ram 1500 pickup.

Chrysler also will invest $40 million at its Trenton North engine plant to install a flexible assembly line for the Pentastar and Tigershark engines.

Chrysler has invested $4.75 billion and added almost 6,000 hourly jobs at U.S. plants since June 2009, the automaker said in a statement.

Marchionne also displayed little enthusiasm for the four-year collective agreement recently negotiated with the Canadian Auto Workers’ union.

“Happy is a very strong word. I think it’s an agreement we can use,” he said. “The CAW collective agreement is what it is. It was an agreement arrived at after lengthy negotiations.”

The CEO as well as his counterparts at Ford and General Motors had urged the CAW to lower and match labour costs with those of UAW plants in the United States. In particular, the Detroit Three were seeking a two-tiered wage system for new hires that keeps permanently keeps them at a lower wage level.

Instead the CAW reached a deal that allows new hires to reach wage parity with current workers over 10 years instead of six.

The union said it received guarantees from Chrysler to maintain its operations and current employment levels in Canada during the life of the new contract.

The 3.6 Pentastar engine is seen during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

The 3.6 Pentastar engine is seen during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, left, is joined by Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and UAW vice-president General Holiefield onstage during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing speaks during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, left, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and UAW vice-president General Holiefield are seen onstage during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne answers questions during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne answers questions during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne answers questions during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne answers questions during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne answers questions during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, left, and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing are seen during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Plant manager Bob Hollingsworth, left, Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and UAW vice president General Holiefield are seen on stage during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs.

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, , left, and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing are seen on stage during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne, right, hugs, UAW vice-president General Holiefield during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

Plant manager Bob Hollingsworth, left, Chrysler chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing are seen onstage during a press conference at Chrysler’s Mack 1 engine plant in Detroit on Thursday, November 15, 2012. Chrysler is adding production at the plant which will create 1,250 new jobs. (TYLER BROWNBRIDGE / The Windsor Star)

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